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B3000 TDI swap


Whitbread

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Howdy folks! I needed a 4wd replacement for my mechanical tdi swapped VW Rabbit pickup, so after some hunting I found a 2000 Black B3000 5 spd 4x4 down in San Antonio TX for a good deal. Got lucky that I had a friend down there for work and he was able to pick the truck up on Thursday and drive it back to Louisville KY. I drove down over the weekend and brought it back to my mad scientist lab in the woods of northern MI. Turns out, the 3.0 has a blown head gasket as it took 3 gallons of coolant to get from KY to MI. No idea how it made it from TX to KY being 2 gallons low and didn't blow up :icon_confused:. Oh well, I didn't buy it for the turd v6 anyway. But due to that, my time table is getting moved up and this thing is getting swapped ASAP as I'm not going to do a head gasket on the 3.slow.


About 4 weeks ago I yanked a fully dressed 2004 Passat TDI engine/harness/ecu from a u-pull yard in the ghetto of detroit for $412.50. Sold the trans computer and intercooler off for $425, so the motor didn't cost me a dime. It needs a cam as 04-06 TDI's do, but I'm a dealer for Colt Cams so that's an easy fix. I'll also delete the balance shaft and put a fresh timing belt on it. I'm hoping all the vw accessories will clear and save any custom belt/pulley work. It's going to get a small set of K03/hx30w compounds which should be good for 180whp/350wtq with the stock injectors. When I upgrade them down the road, 220whp/425wtq should be doable from the same turbos.



Put the truck to work today and went out and cleaned up a few dead limbs that came down in the wind storm last week. It's already sagging 1.5" with just this load so I ordered the airlift helper bag kit, firestone pump, and assorted fittings to hook it all up. I have a 20ft aluminum car hauler I plan on towing with VW's on it and I know that will squat it more than this.



After unloading the bed, I put it on the hoist to get a look at the underside. My god :icon_surprised:. I'm so jealous of all you guys down south/out west. I can't believe this is a 17 year old truck with 216K on it. Looks like a 2 year/20k old truck from up here. This will get the most overkill undercoating job ever done when I get done with the swap and will be washed inside every time it has to see salt.








Worst rust I can find on this thing :icon_rofl:



From my googling, this is a very common issue and I hopped on ebay and ordered the aluminum repair ends and a new pair of Depo door handles as they were only $12/each. Any specific tips for doing the job(other than don't break the door card)?



What's the best course of action here? Can a new seat bottom be bought anywhere for a reasonable price? I have to imagine any seat from a junkyard isn't going to be much better.



I tried 4wd today and the electric motor takes 3-10 minutes to shift in/out. My tailhousing does have the 2 holes for the mechanical linkage, so which exact vehicle do I need to yank a manual 1354 from? Same vehicle for the shit boot/trim? I found the Rugged Ridge manual hubs as well, they are also on order.


Thanks for the help guys and I'm looking forward to this project! I know vw tdi's better than the back of my hand, but have never touched a ranger until now.
 


Whitbread

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Airbag kit came in today. Had the hoist open, so I pulled it in and tossed 'em on. Compressor should be here in the next day or two so I'll finish plumbing the lines up then.



I started calling around to junkyards today and scored a 02 fx4 manual shift T case for $150 shipped to my door with the interior boot and shift lever. The linkage and floor plate were already gone so I need to track those down now.
 

Die.Fledermaus

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I for one am very interested in your TDI knowledge and conversion. Have you figured out the clutch adapter or if the oil pan will clear the front axle? (not to thread jack but a Canadian company http://gastodiesel.tdconversions.com/adapter/ offers one that fits my application and yours but makes no mention of clearing either the late independent or early TTB front axle)
 

Whitbread

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I'm actually in process of becoming a dealer for Randy at TD Conversions :). He's redesigning the adapter to use the 4.0L clutch/flywheel as no one makes a 400+lbft capable clutch for the 9" 3.0L setup.

I'm going to try and use the complete passat accessory setup. I'm far more concerned about that than oil pan clearance. Oil pan mods are easy. But either way, we'll know shortly!
 

Whitbread

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Got the compressor, gauge, and switch wired up. Sooooo much better with a full bed of wood now.



 

68Mercury250Ranger

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might want to consider the load capabilities of that rear axle(wheel bearings) before loading up those air bags too much...... with them on there you might be tempted to put some racks in the stake pockets:beer:
 

Whitbread

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might want to consider the load capabilities of that rear axle(wheel bearings) before loading up those air bags too much...... with them on there you might be tempted to put some racks in the stake pockets:beer:
This 7.5" is wasted anyway, the ring/pinion have a scary amount of backlash. It's going to get a 8.8 swap from an Explorer or fx4 ranger in the very near future. Im not worried about hurting the rear wheel bearings on a 3/4mile trip back from the woods doing ~25mph. I'm not going to put 1500llbs in the bed and drive a few states over haha.
 

Whitbread

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My rear door cables were failed in the normal ford fashion, so I ordered the aluminum ends off ebay and did them all on both doors.








After cleaning the shop up from a 6.4 powerstroke job, I freed up an engine stand and started on the TDI. Pulled the trashed cam to install some head studs and stiffer valve springs. I'm planning on 45-50psi of boost so I'm setting the engine up accordingly.
 
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Whitbread

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Got a nice surprise from ups today! The elusive 2003 manual shift 1354! To my door for $150 from a wrecking yard in Wisconsin. Now I just need to find the shift linkage and floor plate.


This evening I rolled the engine over to work on the bottom end. Balance shaft setup was deleted and stronger main bolts installed.

Before


After


All sealed back up.
 
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BlackBII

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Looks good man. That should free up some power and some weight.

How did you get that 1354 for 150 shipped? Seems like it would cost that much to ship it!

Can't wait to see more progress on this build.
 

Whitbread

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Looks good man. That should free up some power and some weight.

How did you get that 1354 for 150 shipped? Seems like it would cost that much to ship it!

Can't wait to see more progress on this build.
Oh yea, the balance shaft unit is a solid 30 lbs of total crap that belongs in the scrap can. The chain drive fails due to a undersized chain and the oil pump is driven by a hex key shaft that likes to round over. The 04-05 passat tdi's are the only ones with the balance shaft setup, all the rest have just the chain driven oil pump which lasts well past 500kmi.


I just went on car part and found the cheapest T case for a 02-03 fx4 LOL. No magic involved. Case was $100 and $50 to ship. They even threw in the chrome fx4 shift lever/knob! They included the floor plate, but the boots were all cut to get the shifters out :temper:.
 

chucky2

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This 7.5" is wasted anyway, the ring/pinion have a scary amount of backlash. It's going to get a 8.8 swap from an Explorer or fx4 ranger in the very near future. Im not worried about hurting the rear wheel bearings on a 3/4mile trip back from the woods doing ~25mph. I'm not going to put 1500llbs in the bed and drive a few states over haha.
You probably already know this, but, the FX4 Level II (or FX4 for '02 model year only) have 31 spline axle 4.10 rear Torsen setup, but, drum brakes. I think there are Explorers that mirror that, minus the Torsen, but have rear disc brakes.

I remember reading some threads a while back of guys doing the swap on their Rangers, but I don't remember what's involved or even if the width of the Explorer rear is the same as the Ranger. If rear disc is something you'd desire, might be worthwhile checking out.
 

Whitbread

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You probably already know this, but, the FX4 Level II (or FX4 for '02 model year only) have 31 spline axle 4.10 rear Torsen setup, but, drum brakes. I think there are Explorers that mirror that, minus the Torsen, but have rear disc brakes.

I remember reading some threads a while back of guys doing the swap on their Rangers, but I don't remember what's involved or even if the width of the Explorer rear is the same as the Ranger. If rear disc is something you'd desire, might be worthwhile checking out.
Yup, I found two of the ranger 8.8 fx4 4.10 posi rear ends near-ish me, waiting to hear back on who had the better deal. I know as sloppy as my 7.5 is, it's going to be a time bomb with 400lbft being fed to it LOL. I'll be fine with drums for now, can always put disks on later.
 

chucky2

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Yup, I found two of the ranger 8.8 fx4 4.10 posi rear ends near-ish me, waiting to hear back on who had the better deal. I know as sloppy as my 7.5 is, it's going to be a time bomb with 400lbft being fed to it LOL. I'll be fine with drums for now, can always put disks on later.
Well, that's the thing, I don't remember if I've ever heard of anyone going from a drum setup to a disk setup...I've had a lot go on the past few years, and wasn't actively looking for that info, so it's entirely possible people have done that without issue.

Other than the different diff type though, if all else was equal, wouldn't getting an Explorer axle save you time down the road? I get it though, getting a Ranger axle is direct fit (although is the master cylinder and all that good to go going from 9" to 10" drums?)...
 

Whitbread

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Well, that's the thing, I don't remember if I've ever heard of anyone going from a drum setup to a disk setup...I've had a lot go on the past few years, and wasn't actively looking for that info, so it's entirely possible people have done that without issue.

Other than the different diff type though, if all else was equal, wouldn't getting an Explorer axle save you time down the road? I get it though, getting a Ranger axle is direct fit (although is the master cylinder and all that good to go going from 9" to 10" drums?)...
If it's the same axle tube ends, all you'd do is swap the backing plates for caliper brackets and dust tins. I'm not worried at all about making it work. I pulled my truck down tonight and mine already has 10" rear drums and stops plenty good for now so I'd rather not deal with moving spring perches and shock mounts. Not that I do don't have the equipment, I just have other things to spend time on at the current moment.




Bad part is that I now find this truck has 3.73s reading the axle tag. I was 99% sure it had 4.10's as I ran the math on mph/rpm/tire size/trans ratio. So apparently either the speedo or tach is rather off. Since my rear end is a time bomb regardless, the question is; do go the cheap route for the moment and get a 3.73 8.8" and put a lock right in it down the road? Or buy a 4.10 8.8" that has a factory limited slip and a 4.10 front end to match? By the time I buy the lock right, I'm at the same cost in the end, which is more than I was planning on spending tomorrow LOL. No matter what I need to go to the junkyard for the t case shift linkage and floorplate, so I figure I'll bring my rear end and try to talk deal in person. They have both 8.8 3.73 open and 4.10 8.8 ls rear ends in stock.

Since I'm building this truck for towing/hauling, I know the 4.10s will make more sense in the long run and with 31's will put me at 2632rpm@75mph in 5th. That's perfect for the tdi empty cruising and 3krpm @68mph in 4th for any grades with car on a trailer. Decisions, decisions.....

I happily said FU to this pile of crap after it gave me hell getting stuck in 4lo, then refusing to shift back to 2wd for 3 hours :annoyed:.


Hellooo manual case!
 

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